Monday, January 20, 2014

Ireland’s Vatican ambassador in Rome for meeting with Pope

Ireland’s non-resident ambassador to the Vatican was among a whole host of diplomats greeted by Pope Francis this week.

David Cooney, who in 2012 presented his credentials to Pope Benedict
as the first non-residential ambassador to the Holy See, joined 179
ambassadors to the Vatican who gathered on Monday for the annual New
Year’s greeting delivered by the Pontiff to the diplomaticcorps.

During his address to ambassadors to the Vatican, Pope Francis laid
out the issues he intends to highlight on an international scale.

The
Pontiff prioritised the family, but also took time to speak out against
unemployment, hunger, and the throw away culture, where he specifically
cited abortion.

"It is frightful to simply think that there are children, victims of
abortion, who will never see the light of day; children being used as
soldiers, abused and killed in armed conflicts; and children being
bought and sold in that terrible form of modern slavery which is human
trafficking, a true crime against humanity,” the Pope said.

Pope Francis also called for governments to take courageous decisions
that lead to peace and dialogue, especially when it comes to armed
conflicts like the ones taking place in the Middle East and Africa.

The Holy See has official diplomatic ties with 180 countries; among the most recent is South Sudan.